The Things We Never Say
Published on 7. May 2026
Book
Hardback
208 pages
978-0-241-81430-7 (ISBN)
Description
THE INSTANT SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER
FROM THE PULITZER-WINNING, BOOKER-SHORTLISTED ELIZABETH STROUT COMES A STUNNING STANDALONE NOVEL OF LOVE, LONELINESS AND NEW BEGINNINGS
' Strout is brilliant at uncovering what goes on beneath the surface of ordinary life' THE TIMES
'Emotionally stunning, devastatingly wise . . . her best novel yet' RACHEL JOYCE
''Elizabeth Strout writes extraordinary fiction about ordinary people' TELEGRAPH
'A moving, tender and wise novel about a committed teacher who is utterly confounded by the emotional complexities of daily life. This might be Elizabeth Strout's best yet' CLARE CHAMBERS
Artie Dam is a man with a secret. He spends his days teaching history to high schoolers, expanding their young minds, correcting their casual cruelties, and lending a kind word to those who need it most. He goes to holiday parties with his wife of three decades, makes small talk with neighbours, and, on weekends, takes his sailboat out on the beautiful Massachusetts Bay. He is, by all appearances, present and alive. But inside, Artie is plagued by feelings of isolation. He looks out at a world gone mad-at himself and the people around him-and turns a question over and over in his mind: how is it that we know so little about one another, even those closest to us?
And then, one day, Artie learns that life has been keeping a secret from him, one that threatens to upend his entire world. Once he learns it, he is forced to chart a new course, to reconsider the relationships he holds most dear-and to make peace with the mysteries at the heart of our existence.
With exquisite prose and profound insight, Elizabeth Strout captures the way grief reverberates through decades, the comfort found in deep friendships and the freedom that comes when we break free of our secrets. The Things We Never Say is a stunning new novel from one of our most acclaimed observers of the human heart.
***
PRAISE FOR ELIZABETH STROUT:
'A terrific writer' ZADIE SMITH
'A superbly gifted storyteller' HILARY MANTEL
'Elizabeth Strout is one of my very favourite writers' ANN PATCHETT
'She gets better with each book' MAGGIE O'FARRELL
'A beautiful read' OPRAH WINFREY
'Strout is, as ever, wonderfully attentive life's escapable cruelties and woes' SUNDAY TIMES
FROM THE PULITZER-WINNING, BOOKER-SHORTLISTED ELIZABETH STROUT COMES A STUNNING STANDALONE NOVEL OF LOVE, LONELINESS AND NEW BEGINNINGS
' Strout is brilliant at uncovering what goes on beneath the surface of ordinary life' THE TIMES
'Emotionally stunning, devastatingly wise . . . her best novel yet' RACHEL JOYCE
''Elizabeth Strout writes extraordinary fiction about ordinary people' TELEGRAPH
'A moving, tender and wise novel about a committed teacher who is utterly confounded by the emotional complexities of daily life. This might be Elizabeth Strout's best yet' CLARE CHAMBERS
Artie Dam is a man with a secret. He spends his days teaching history to high schoolers, expanding their young minds, correcting their casual cruelties, and lending a kind word to those who need it most. He goes to holiday parties with his wife of three decades, makes small talk with neighbours, and, on weekends, takes his sailboat out on the beautiful Massachusetts Bay. He is, by all appearances, present and alive. But inside, Artie is plagued by feelings of isolation. He looks out at a world gone mad-at himself and the people around him-and turns a question over and over in his mind: how is it that we know so little about one another, even those closest to us?
And then, one day, Artie learns that life has been keeping a secret from him, one that threatens to upend his entire world. Once he learns it, he is forced to chart a new course, to reconsider the relationships he holds most dear-and to make peace with the mysteries at the heart of our existence.
With exquisite prose and profound insight, Elizabeth Strout captures the way grief reverberates through decades, the comfort found in deep friendships and the freedom that comes when we break free of our secrets. The Things We Never Say is a stunning new novel from one of our most acclaimed observers of the human heart.
***
PRAISE FOR ELIZABETH STROUT:
'A terrific writer' ZADIE SMITH
'A superbly gifted storyteller' HILARY MANTEL
'Elizabeth Strout is one of my very favourite writers' ANN PATCHETT
'She gets better with each book' MAGGIE O'FARRELL
'A beautiful read' OPRAH WINFREY
'Strout is, as ever, wonderfully attentive life's escapable cruelties and woes' SUNDAY TIMES
Reviews / Votes
[Elizabeth Strout's] 11th novel might well be the first great work of fiction about Trump's presidency...This is a deeply existential novel, preoccupied with secrecy, loneliness and the limits of understanding. Strout is brilliant at uncovering what goes on beneath the surface of ordinary life...There is nothing showy about Strout's prose, but over the past two decades her novels have become an ambitious literary project, a kind of interconnected anatomy of American solitude * The Times * A moving, tender and wise novel about a committed teacher who is utterly confounded by the emotional complexities of daily life. This might be Elizabeth Strout's best yet * Clare Chambers * Readers will delight in the discovery of this new fictional world around Artie Dam, and the possibilities that lie ahead...Let's hope that this fine author continues steadily along her path, delivering unto her loyal readers story upon story, gift upon gift * The Guardian * One of the most profoundly moving books I have read - I envy anyone reading it for the first time. Elizabeth Strout is one of those rare novelists whose books leave you a little wiser, open and more compassionate than you were when you began reading. Emotionally stunning, devastatingly wise, a beautiful read. Her best novel yet * Rachel Joyce * Elizabeth Strout writes extraordinary fiction about ordinary people...Strout's gift is to reveal their frustrations and epiphanies in stories that are deceptively simple yet carry a profound emotional charge * The Telegraph * This is a profound, resplendent novel that stares our present moment in the face while throwing a lifeboat to cling to in the storm. And Artie Dam is someone you may never be able to forget, not least for his white socks and how they irritate his wife - these are the things we remember, which Strout, a titan of the most intricate storytelling, understands well. * Financial Times * One of the best novels I have read. I am so stunned by it, how moving and beautiful and perfect it is * Anna Funder * Strout is always smart, always perceptive, and Artie is a memorable figure * Harper's Bazaar * I was torn between wanting to devour it in a single sitting and slowly savouring its brilliance. Strout writes about some of the darkest, saddest things with such grace and humanity that you're left still feeling optimistic about the world. The Things We Never Say is utterly captivating in the classic Stroutian understated way. No one else delves into the intricacies of everyday life with such searing insight and honesty. If stranded on a desert island, The Complete Works of Strout, would unequivocally be my book of choice to remind me of the complexity and ultimate goodness of people. * Roxy Dunn * A meditation on the unspoken fears that define us and the abiding love that, despite everything, manages to sustain us * The Mirror *More details
Language
English
Place of publication
London
United Kingdom
Publishing group
Penguin Books Ltd
Dimensions
Height: 203 mm
Width: 134 mm
Thickness: 20 mm
Weight
260 gr
ISBN-13
978-0-241-81430-7 (9780241814307)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
Additional editions
Elizabeth Strout
The Things We Never Say
The new standalone novel from the bestselling, prize-winning author of Olive Kitteridge and Lucy By The Sea
E-Book
05/2026
Penguin Books Ltd
€12.99
Available for download
Person
Elizabeth Strout is the Pulitzer prize-winning author of My Name is Lucy Barton, Anything is Possible, Oh William!, Amy and Isabelle, Abide With Me, The Burgess Boys, Olive Kitteridge, and Olive, Again. She has been nominated for the PEN/Faulkner Award, the International Dublin Literary Award, the Orange Prize and the Booker Prize. She lives in Maine.